Adrian Yanez may be his own harshest critic.
Yanez (17-5) bounced back from a slump of two consecutive knockout losses in style, defeating Vinicius Salvador at UFC Fight Night 241 on May 18. Yanez has since called out unranked up-and-comers Victor Henry and Daniel Santos, with the latter already accepting the call. Yanez also has lofty goals, including a shot at Deiveson Figueiredo, but believes it’s out of reach. Yanez recently spoke to MMA Junkie about his plans to climb the ranks again.
“If I’m trying to wedge myself in to fight somebody in the top 15, I feel like I want to fight someone like Figgy.” [Deiveson
Figueiredo]“I think my favorite fighter is Brandon Moreno because I’ve fought him a few times,” Yanez explained.
A fight with Figueiredo may not be on the cards for now, as “Deus da Guerra” recently agreed to face Marlon Vera on August 3 at UFC Abu Dhabi. Yáñez may have lofty goals in mind with his name, but he’s keeping his expectations in check. The Texas native came into UFC with five straight wins to rise to the 135-pound rankings, but back-to-back stoppage losses to Rob Font and Jonathan Martinez in 2023 caused his ranking to plummet. Despite a big win in his last bout, Yáñez is putting the brakes on trying to get another shot at a ranked opponent.
“I made two mistakes, now I have to right three,” Yanez said. “I have to go out there and in a way, for every five steps back, you have to take 10 steps forward…Especially fighting a guy like Salvador, after knocking him out, am I qualified to fight a top 15 guy, a guy who came up from 125? [pounds]”I’m 0-2 in the UFC. Do I deserve to fight someone in the top 15? I don’t even think I deserve to fight someone in the top 15. Of course I went out there and did what I had to do against him. That’s me objectively.”
Yanez continued: “Maybe beating someone like Victor Henry or one of the Basharat brothers, Ayeman Zahabi. If I beat them, if I win by smash or knockout, then of course I’ll demand a win against a top 15 player.”
